Richard E. Gutting Jr., former president of the National Fisheries Institute (NFI), died Tuesday in Alexandria, Va. He was 70.
Gutting graduated from Stanford University and Stanford Law School in 1968 before embarking on a 45-year career of law, government service, writing and teaching. He was NFI president from 1997 until 2002 and partner with the law firm of Redmon, Peyton and Braswell.
Gutting specialized in regulatory and trade issues important to the seafood industry, and wrote a number of books on import regulation and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as well as Urner Barry’s daily Foreign Trade. His expertise on trade law, imports and the FDA will be sorely missed.
NFI says that Gutting, who was known for his signature bow tie, was very generous with his time and advice to seafood companies facing critical legal and regulatory issues.
"In his many roles he was a scholar, a teacher and an expert and but most importantly he was a trusted leader for a community as it quickly transitioned from local to global," said NFI President John Connelly.
Gutting also served as general counsel for fisheries for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, counsel for the Subcommittee on Fisheries and Wildlife Conservation of the U.S. House of Representatives and as legal advisor to the President’s Council on Environmental Quality.
He is survived by his wife of 37 years, Jimmie B. Cook, as well as two children and four grandchildren.
